So You Want to be a Meet Director?
By
Scott Yard
The purpose of this article is to share my story of personal growth, inner
peace and…
WTF? I’m just pulling your leg. The real reason I’m writing this article is
for anyone out there thinking about putting on a meet. I want them to read this
and say, “Damn! That’s pretty easy. I can run a meet too!”
Why did I do it?
I’ve been competing in meets since I was 17 years old. Since then, I’ve had
the chance to participate in many different types of meets. I attended small
local meets with ten people and five spectators – two of them being my mom and
dad. I also attended and placed third at what I think is the biggest and best of
all meets, the Arnold Bench Bash. After participating in so many, I always
wondered what it would be like on the other side of the scoring table. But,
because I’m always training to compete in one, I always tell myself I don’t have
time to run one.
And then…it started.
SNAP! CRUNCH!
Hearing those two sounds changed my life. It pushed me over the edge and
finally got me to start looking into running a meet.
“SNAP! CRUNCH!” echoed through the room when my bicep tendon split down the
middle like a piece of string cheese. Having this happen was a rude awakening. I
realized that one day I wouldn’t be able to compete and that the end of my
competitive career could happen a lot faster than I thought. I never suffered a
major injury before, and having one made me think of a terrifying question:
“What will I do once I can’t powerlift?” In actuality, I’m not good at many
other things and until “vodka drinking” becomes a sport, I’m shit out of luck.
Luckily, competing in a meet isn’t the only way to be part of this sport. By
holding meets, I can actually do something to give back to the sport - a sport I
love and benefit so much from.
The meet is six days away!
Let’s fast-forward to two weeks ago…I’m sitting at my house looking at the
lonely entry form in my hand. It’s past the due date and I have one f@#*ing
completed entry form. Naturally, I get a little nervous. One entry? How do I put
on a meet with one entry?
As I’m complaining to my wife about how I’m going to have to cancel the meet,
she brings up a very good point that I overlooked. She says, “Why are you
bitching? You never send your form in until you get there the
day of the meet.”
Suddenly I realized that that’s exactly what I do! So, now the gamble starts.
Do I take a chance and risk losing money to hold a meet for one guy? Or, do I
gamble on the powerlifting community and hope 10 - 15 guys show up?
The gamble paid off and I ended up having 15 lifters.
Meet day, where’s the chalk?
There are some basic things needed at a meet. Some of these are very obvious
and others are not. The best thing I can say is to make a checklist and have it
meet day. This is because I didn’t have one and I forgot a few things…one of
those being chalk! How the hell do you forget chalk? I don’t know, but I did. I
also forgot weight trees. Luckily I have some good pals that picked up on this
and ran back to the gym to get them before the meet started. Now, I’m not going
to give you a list of EVERYTHING you may need, but I’m going to share the things
that people take for granted. Things you don’t NEED, but for your own ass, you
should do.
1. Insurance Policy
I know, I know. No one can sue you if you didn’t do anything wrong, right?
Wrong. Many people don’t realize that most insurance policies don’t come
into play due to negligence. They come into play when you’re innocent, yet still
being accused of fault and you need the defense cost paid. Basically what I’m
saying is the insurance policy will pay for a lawyer to defend you…right or
wrong. Buy a policy! If you borrow equipment, be sure to add that person as an
additional insured. Then he has some coverage too.
2. Rubber Mats
The worst thing you can do is have a great meet and then move all of your
equipment out of the venue, only to find out that you’ve torn up the cheap,
sticky tile floor. Get some heavy mats and put a carpet over the top of them.
Rubber mats slide, and benchers need carpet for feet grip. If you do this, it
will solidify the relationship you have with the owner of the property, and
it’ll keep the door open for more meets in the future.
3. Spotters and Loaders
How many meets have you been to where you’ve been asked, “Hey man, can you
spot and load for me?”
It happens to all of us. If you do it once, you’ll be asked forever. There’s
nothing wrong with it, but when people come to a meet, they’re usually not
coming just to spot and load. Be sure that you have enough help going into the
meet, and you aren’t hoping that once the meet begins, some people will step up
to help. What happens if nobody does? The chance of someone getting hurt grows,
and your ass is on the line even more. In all fairness, I did have to ask one
guy to judge for me – thanks Doug – but it wasn’t for lack of preparation:
someone bailed out last minute.
4. Clean Up Crew
I’m a firm believer in leaving a place the way it was handed to you. I’m not
saying to go out and buy a mop and bucket and other janitorial supplies, but it
goes a long way with the owner if you ask them where they keep their mop so you
can clean up before you leave. Since there aren’t property owners jumping out of
their seats to run powerlifting meets in their buildings, you have to do these
little things to be sure you can come back for the next meet.
5. Give Thanks
So, the dust has settled. The floor is mopped. All the equipment is back in
the gym and I notice that there were five people other than me who were crucial
to the meet’s success. My meet was a success not because of me, but because of
the great people I’ve luckily surrounded myself with. Make sure you thank them!
Thanks guys!
Since the meet has ended, I already have two meets ready for the remainder of
the year. I like the title of powerlifter, but I think I like the title of meet
director a little more. At least for now…
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